Oracle Audit Survival Guide

Oracle audits are complex and strategically targeted, often leading to significant financial implications for companies due to their intricate licensing rules and potential for compliance issues. This guide provides comprehensive strategies to navigate these audits, emphasizing the importance of proactive compliance management, engaging with experts like LicenseFortress, and maintaining strict control over communication and documentation to effectively manage the audit process and mitigate risks.

About The Book

The Oracle Audit Survival Guide," is a valuable resource for anyone facing the risk of an Oracle software audit. It provides insights into Oracle's audit process and offers guidance on navigating through it successfully. Whether you are dealing with Oracle or other enterprise vendors, the lessons shared in this guide will be applicable. With the expertise of the author, Dr. Michael J. Corey, who has over 40 years of experience in Oracle technology, and the contributions of the tech reviewer, Dean Bolton, this guide is a must-have for organizations looking to overcome the burden and risks of software audits. Download this ebook to gain valuable knowledge and strategies for defending against Oracle audits.

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Chapter One

Audit Sweet Spot

According to the survey, the sweet spot for software audits was companies from two hundred and fifty employees to under one thousand.  Eighty-three percent of these companies reported being audited within three years.  This should be no surprise; companies in this size range are big enough to have a substantial compliance gap but small enough not to have the resources needed to push back against the software vendor. 

The next most likely target for being audited was companies with over one thousand employees.  Seventy-seven percent of these companies reported being audited within three years.  Once again, no surprises.  Large companies have the potential to have significant compliance gaps.  At LicenseFortress, we have seen a small customer that spent less than twenty thousand dollars annually with Oracle have a compliance gap of over a million dollars, and we have helped customers with compliance gaps that ran into the billions of dollars.   

The combination of lost revenue associated with the pandemic and the current uncertainty of the economic climate has created a perfect storm for software audit activity.  Now is not the time to ignore the risk of a potential audit. Now is the time to take proactive steps to ensure your organization’s house is in order concerning its software license compliance. 

This audit survival guide is the resource you can use to help you understand Oracle’s audit process and navigate through it when the vendor comes knocking.  This guide should not replace engaging the services of a vendor like LicenseFortress, which has over a decade of helping organizations overcome the burden and risks of Oracle audits.  While this guide focuses on Oracle, the lessons shared in this guide will apply to any enterprise vendor compliance audit.

Audit Triggers

Oracle audits are not random events - regardless of what Oracle License Management services might say.  Like all software vendors, Oracle will focus its software license compliance audit efforts where it feels it has the most significant potential for a financial return. Decades of experience has taught LicenseFortress that the following events substantially increase the risk that your organization will be audited in the near future. 

Time is Your Enemy 

As Las Vegas casinos know, the longer you stay at the tables playing blackjack, the more likely they will make money off you.  No winning streak can go on forever.  Oracle knows the longer you deploy Oracle software, the more likely you will develop a software compliance issue. In the decades LicenseFortress has been helping companies with Oracle software compliance, we have yet to find a 100% software-compliant organization. 

Why People Download This E-Book?  

Understanding Oracle Audits: The book provides detailed insights into the nature and types of Oracle audits, including soft audits and official audits. This knowledge can help organizations prepare for and navigate through these audits effectively.


Audit Preparation and Response Strategies: 
The book outlines key strategies for responding to audit requests, controlling communication, and pushing back on audit findings. This information can be crucial for organizations to limit the scope of the audit and avoid unnecessary liabilities.


Legal Considerations: 
The book emphasizes the importance of legal review at various stages of the audit process. This can help organizations avoid future liabilities and admissions of under-licensing.


Importance of External Expertise: 
The book highlights the benefits of engaging external expertise during Oracle audits. It mentions that firms that hire third-party services for Oracle audits often report reduced liability.


Understanding Audit Triggers: 
The book explains various triggers that might prompt an Oracle audit, such as termination of support, mergers or acquisitions, and significant Java usage. This knowledge can help organizations anticipate potential audits and take proactive measures to ensure compliance.

About the Author

Dr. Michael J. Corey is the co-founder of LicenseFortress. Michael has worked with Oracle technology for over 40 years.  In 2015 and 2017, he was named among “Top 100 Most Influential People in the Cloud Industry” by Onlyatica.com. He has been a recognized Oracle Ace and VMware vExpert since 2012.  From 2014 to 2019, Michael was a Microsoft MVP. Michael is the Original Oracle Press Author and has over ten books published on the topics of Oracle, Microsoft, and VMWare. Michael is a past president of the International Oracle Users Group and a founder of the Professional Association of SQL Server. For over 35 years, Michael has been a frequent speaker at business and technology events all over the globe. 

Michael received a gubernatorial appointment to the Massachusetts Robert H. Goddard Council for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, and in 2021, he earned his doctorate from Temple University. 

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